This application relates generally to networks, and more particularly, to collecting and reporting network monitoring data accumulated by remote probes.
The present application incorporates by reference, in its entirety, U.S. Pat. No. 5,886,643.
The aforementioned Patent discloses a system for collecting network traffic data, which employs remote probes and a centralized network manager. Each remote probe monitors traffic locally over one or several network segments to which the probe couples. Each remote probe regularly transmits its monitoring data to the centralized network manager. The network manager processes the monitoring data. For example, the manager may tag a portion of the data as representative of the network traffic. The tagged data eliminates redundancies that occur when several probes observe the same traffic. The network manager stores the processed data for later use.
The network manager produces traffic reports using the processed data. The traffic reports provide information on the traffic to and from particular network addresses. The processed data also provides a functional map of the network based on the locations of remote probes. The report and mapping information is approximate, because the processed monitoring data is only representative of the actual network traffic.